Movement performance and movement difficulties in typical school-aged children.

INTRODUCTION: Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) is an impairment of executive motor skills. Children aged 7-10 years gradually develop effective movement that enables smooth performance in various daily self-care, academic and sport activities. The purpose of this study was to examine whether the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition-Age Band 2, (MABC2-AB2), which is a western standardized test, could be used in Thai children for differentiating between movement performance and movement difficulties. METHOD: Three hundred and sixty typical Thai children aged 7-10 years old were recruited from three primary schools in Chiang Mai district, Thailand. The participants were divided into four age groups and tested using the Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition-Age Band 2-Thai version (MABC2-AB2-T). RESULTS: Manual Dexterity, Aiming and Catching, and Balance rose with age increment. Older participants had better movement performance than younger ones. The results showed that 91.11 percent of the participants had typical movement, while 3.61 and 5.28 percent of them had movement difficulty and movement at risk, respectively. In addition, three test items: Drawing Trail, Walking Heel to Toe Forward, and Hopping on Mats had a ceiling effect when used for Thai children. CONCLUSION: The MABC2-AB2-T could be used to assess movement performance and movement difficulties in Thai children. About 9 percent of typical Thai children aged 7-10 years old needed early intervention. Administration of the three test items may need to be revised.

Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition (MABC2): Cross-Cultural Validity, Content Validity, and Interrater Reliability in Thai Children.

INTRODUCTION: The Movement Assessment Battery for Children-Second Edition (MABC2) is a standardized test for detecting children with movement difficulty. It was established and is used widely in Western countries. Studying cross-cultural validity and reliability was necessary before using the MABC2 with Thai children. PURPOSES: To study cross-cultural validity, content validity, and interrater reliability of the MABC2. METHOD: The MABC2-Age Band 2 (AB2: children aged 7-10 years) was translated into Thai from the source version of the MABC2 by using the following steps: forward translation, backward translation, panel discussion, and testing of the prefinal version of the Thai-MABC2-AB2. Five occupational therapists checked the content validity of the test. Twenty-nine children, aged 7-10 years, were examined by two testers in order to establish interrater reliability. RESULTS: This cross-cultural study demonstrated validity in the Thai context. Content validity was good with an item-objective congruence (IOC) range from 0.73 to 0.95. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of interrater reliability ranged from 0.71 to 1.00. CONCLUSION: The Thai-MABC2-AB2 is a good fit for use in a clinical and Thai cultural setting. Interrater reliability was moderate to good, which meant results between testers were consistent.

Thai Elephant-Assisted Therapy Programme in Children with Down Syndrome.

The objectives of this study were to examine the effects of the Thai Elephant-Assisted Therapy Programme for children with Down syndrome (DS) (TETP-D) on balance, postural control and visual motor integration (VMI). A quasi-experimental design with blind control was used. Sixteen children with DS from grades 1 to 6, in a Thailand, public school were recruited for this study. The participants were divided voluntarily into two groups: control and experimental. These both groups received regular school activities, but the experimental group had added treatment, which consisted of TETP-D twice a week for 2 months. The balance subtest of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency 2, the postural control record form and Beery VMI were applied as outcome measure 1 week before and after the TETP-D. The results showed no significant difference in balance or postural control. However, a significant difference of VMI was shown between the two groups (z = 13.5, p = .04). Children with DS benefited from the TETP-D as it improved their VMI. The TETP-D could improve balance and postural control if provided within a suitable frequency and duration. Further research is needed to test this hypothesis. The limitations of this study are the significant differences in some aspects of the groups at pre-test such as gender and supine flexion of postural control. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.